Arizona Approves Funding for Chase Field Renovations

(photo from my visit to Chase Field for the 2023 World Series)

The Arizona Diamondbacks are currently in the process of selling off players to plan for their future, and they're planning for their future on the operations side as well.  Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs signed legislation last month that will unlock up to $500 million in funding for critical Chase Field infrastructure renovations.  These funds are being activated through an increasingly common mechanism in the sports world (including the new A's park), which is essentially a tax district that will capture all sales tax revenue generated by the stadium and a defined surrounding area, as well as "jock tax" revenue, and use that money to pay back the funds.  Not to get too much in the weeds here, but I think it's worth pointing out in today's political climate that the governor is a Democrat in a purple state and this bill received wide bipartisan support.  I mentioned in a post last year that the Diamondbacks are up against the end of their current lease approaching in 2027, and without these renovations, the team surely would have been forced to explore other stadium options.  So, regardless of what you might think of subsidizing sports venues, it was a wise move for Gov. Hobbs' reelection campaign to push for this bill to ensure the D-Backs did not leave Phoenix under her watch - this new source of funding will keep the Snakes in Phoenix through at least 2057.  Chase Field has been a boon to the urban core since the franchise's inception, particularly within the last few years following the team's World Series run in 2023.

I was at that World Series, and I vividly recall how much the stadium had barely seemed to change at all in the previous 16 years since I was first there in 2007.  The speaker system was a garbled mess, the jumbotron looked like it was well past its functional use, screens were pixelated and hard to read, and the air conditioning did not seem to be reaching to the upper deck where I sat.  By that point in 2023, the D-Backs had not even been able to safely open their roof for a couple of years while fans were inside.  All very similar problems that the Brewers faced recently, which also had to be rectified with state funding.  The Chase Field bill passed by the State of Arizona made it very clear that no money can be used for any aesthetic upgrades or fan suites, so if you factor in the $250M the team is also kicking in for that aspect, this stadium could look and feel very different in a few years.  Selfishly, I'm always sort of secretly hoping for new stadiums, but in the case of some teams like the D-Backs or the Blue Jays that have prime downtown real estate with an expensive obsolete roof, a renovation makes way more sense.  Despite the fact that I've been to Arizona for baseball more than just about any non-resident state, I may just have to return to see the renovations when they are complete.  It's a very exciting time in my world as a ballpark chaser, as all these chess pieces start to move with different teams, to think about how different the baseball stadium landscape might look in the next decade.

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 7/31/25:

Brewers 64-44, +1.0, -- WC; 3 @ Nationals, 3 @ Braves, 3 v. Mets

Twins 51-57, -12.0, -5.5 WC; 3 @ Guardians, 3 @ Tigers, 3 v. Royals

Athletics 48-63, -15.0, -10.0 WC; 3 v. Diamondbacks, 3 @ Nationals, 3 @ Orioles

2025 GAMES ATTENDED:

Erik - 8
Peter - 24

Tampa Bay Rays Reportedly Being Sold

It was announced around the All-Star Break last week that Stu Sternberg, the current majority owner of the Tampa Bay Rays, had reached an agreement in principle to sell the team to a group led by Patrick Zalupski, a Florida developer.  Details are scarce at this point, other than the fact that the valuation is around $1.7 billion, and that the deal could be completed as soon as September.  It's worth noting that Sternberg originally purchased the Rays for "only" $200M in 2004.  One other important detail is that Zalupski is interested in keeping the team in the Tampa Bay region, despite being based out of Jacksonville, and surely that had some weight in Sternberg reportedly accepting his bid.  This all comes at a time when the Rays are in the middle of a playoff push in their temporary home at an A-ball park, and the team's immediate and long-term future homes are both severely in doubt.  The MLB schedule has been released around this time the last few years, and I suspect it hasn't been released for 2026 yet because nobody is certain whether or not Tropicana Field will be repaired in time for next season.

Let's for argument's sake say the sale does go through.  Even if that happens, this essentially resets the entire new ballpark process back pretty close to square one.  Which means that we're looking at probably minimum 5 years out for when the Rays could potentially be playing in a permanent new home.  The new ownership group could certainly build off the legwork of past site studies, government negotiations, and designs, but they are also reportedly only interested in covering 60% of the stadium cost, which will mean trying to resurrect old public financing deals or finding money elsewhere.  St. Petersburg says they're keeping the door open to the new ownership group, but I find it hard to believe that they'd open their ears and their wallets all over again, only this time in 2026 dollars.  The new ownership group reportedly does prefer Tampa to St. Pete, but the current ownership group has tried and failed so many times in Tampa that I can't see that happening unless there is a larger private financing chunk, or if new previously unvetted sites emerge.  Tampa is in a different county than St. Pete which further muddies the political aspect.  The biggest site contender for a ballpark in Tampa in the past is now slated to become a soccer stadium, so that would seem to be off the table.  I'm obviously not a real reporter and I'm not privy to the day-to-day conversations, so maybe things have changed on that front, and maybe Tampa is willing to loosen their purse strings since they were within a fingernail of the team building in St. Pete.  But purely as an outsider who's been following this story for 20 years, to say I'm skeptical is an understatement.  My money would be on Orlando swooping in.  They've demonstrated that they have substantial private backing and have an organized campaign to bring a team to the area.  I could see them partnering with Zalupski to make something happen there if he doesn't have the stomach for a multi-year process in Tampa Bay.  I'm honestly kind of surprised that Orlando didn't win a bid to land the Rays in the first place.  Orlando is only about 90 minutes from Tampa and roughly the same size and media market, so I think this would also satisfy Commissioner Manfred's desire to keep a team in this area.  I've been wrong many, many times before, but as of July 21st 2025, that is my guess.

As always, and as I say multiple times a year with the Rays - stay tuned.

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 7/21/25:

Brewers 59-40, --, +5.0 WC; 3 @ Mariners, 3 v. Marlins, 3 v. Cubs

Twins 48-51, -11.5, -5.0 WC; 3 @ Dodgers, 3 v. Nationals, 3 v. Red Sox

Athletics 42-59, -16.0, -12.0 WC; 3 @ Rangers, 4 @ Astros, 3 v. Mariners

2025 GAMES ATTENDED:

Erik - 7
Peter - 23

Return to Milwaukee

All photos of American Family Field available on Flickr.

My family and I just got back from a whirlwind 9-day return visit to Milwaukee this past week.  We went to Summerfest, we hung out with friends and family, we visited many parks and beaches, we ate frozen custard, and we imbibed at restaurants and bars both new and old.  But one of the highlights was of course returning to American Family Field.  It's interesting every time we come back to my home ballpark now to see it through a fresh set of eyes.  I don't want to say I ever took it for granted when we lived in Milwaukee, but I definitely get much more excited for the limited opportunities I do get to go to Brewers games now, and I have a newfound appreciation for the comforts of home and all its quirks.  I tend to be much more observant and live in the moment when I go to new or seldom-visited ballparks, and I definitely felt that internal shift in my mindset during our two games at AmFam Field.  Tuesday night's affair pitting young phenom Jacob Misiorowski against the old battle-tested Clayton Kershaw was probably in my top 10 regular season MLB games I've ever witnessed in person, and something that was made even more special by the fact that I was a tourist instead of a resident.  It's weird to write a post entitled "Return to Milwaukee" when I lived there for 75% of my life, but this was really my first time at a Brewers home game that I truly felt like a visitor, so I think the title is fitting.  It was an odd feeling to be sure, but being around those two huge crowds was also very rejuvenating, and it was nice to be among my people and remember why I am a Brewers fan.

It certainly didn't hurt that the Brewers are playing so well right now.  They just finished a perfect 6-0 homestand to end the first half at 56-40, which is the most wins a Brewers team has ever had at the All-Star Break in its 57-year history.  I could digress for hours on the Brewers' long-term strategy for success - and in fact I did edit out multiple paragraphs from this post - but needless to say, it's impressive that this team is still breaking records in the midst of an 8 1/2-year run the likes of which this franchise has never known.  They've been doing it primarily with defense and pitching the last 5 years or so, and myself and 38,000+ fellow Brewers fans got a glimpse of the franchise's future pitching star on Tuesday night with a dominant 12-strikeout performance against a future Hall-of-Famer (I think that term is used way too loosely but I don't think anybody can deny Kershaw will have a plaque in Cooperstown).  It was only Miz's 5th career start, but it was so impressive that I think it was the cherry on top that earned him a controversial selection to the All-Star Game.  Megan and I also went to Friday night's beatdown of the Nationals.  Christian Yelich and electric newcomer Andrew Vaughn both homered in this win, with DL Hall and Quinn Priester combining to complete all 9 innings with only 3 runs allowed between them.  The walk back to the car in the pouring rain never seems to bother you after a big win, and feeling that energy in the parking lot is one of the things I missed most about American Family Field.

Speaking of energy in the parking lot, one thing I am certainly guilty of taking for granted when I lived in Milwaukee is tailgating, so we took full advantage of that Friday night.  There just aren't that many places where drinking in a parking lot is not only allowed but encouraged, and it was a sight for sore eyes.  It was really more of a "beergate" as Erik and I used to say, because we didn't want to grill anything and be too full so we could explore some of the seemingly perennial food upgrades at the ballpark.  Concessions and audio-visual enhancements would make AmFam Field nearly unrecognizable to anyone who has not been there in the last decade.  This year's newest addition comes in the form of a new bar and food truck park in the left field corner on the loge level, which was previously a dead zone that will not be missed.  I thought the food in the 3rd Street Market Hall in right field was still much better than this area, but I liked the intimate vibe here, and it's a really cool bar that has at least a partial view of the field, which you can't say about many other bars at this ballpark.  I appreciate that the Brewers make every effort to work with what they have and constantly improve the fan experience, which they know is so important as a revenue generator.  There's only so much they can fit within the bones of this 25-year old retractable-roof park and it will always pale in comparison to the Target Fields of the world in terms of modern design and amenities, but the food, drinks, intangibles, and atmosphere - not to mention the team - are near the top of just about any other MLB experience you'll have.  I made the comment to Megan on Friday night as we were leaving that I still like Target Field better as a stadium, but the palpable vibe and energy at AmFam is way better, and ultimately what good is a beautiful stadium if it doesn't have atmosphere?

With each passing visit, I feel a bit more disconnected from Milwaukee as "home," and it gets a little bit more surreal every time we go back.  We had a lot of great memories there, but we unfortunately had to move away rather suddenly due to circumstances I won't get into, and that in and of itself will never make Milwaukee feel the same.  But the common thread, besides family and friends, is and always will be the Brewers.  Sometimes it only takes a fleeting experience to make something feel familiar to you all over again.

See below for an update to my American Family Field rankings for the first time since 2017.

updated park rankings
(see also previous rankings from 4/11/17):
aesthetics - decreases to 6 (interior is starting to feel outdated)
views from park - decreases to 3 (becoming more and more obstructed)
view to field - 4
surrounding area - improves to 4 (discovered lots of great places when we lived nearby)
food variety - 9
nachos - 9
beer - decreases to 7 (better variety, higher price)
vendor price - 7
ticket price - decreases to 9
atmosphere - 8
walk to park - 6
parking price/proximity - improves to 7
concourses - decreases to 7
team shop - 10
kids area - 7 (added category since 2017 - you can race a sausage!)

best food – Story Hill BKC burgers or 3rd St Market Hall
most unique stadium feature – roof, Bernie's slide
best jumbotron feature – Roll Out the Barrel 7th inning stretch
best between-inning feature – Johnsonville Sausage Race

updated field dimensions - 342/400/345

starters - Clayton Kershaw (LAD) v. Jacob Misiorowski (MIL); Mitchell Parker (WSH) v. DL Hall (MIL)
opponent - Los Angeles Dodgers; Washington Nationals
time of game - 2:17; 2:15
attendance - 38175; 35057
score - 3-1 W; 8-3 W

Brewers score that day - 3-1 W; 8-3 W

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 7/14/25:

Brewers 56-40, -1.0, +4.0 WC; All-Star Break, 3 @ Dodgers

Twins 47-49, -11.5, -4.0 WC; All-Star Break, 3 @ Rockies
Athletics 41-57, -16.0, -11.0 WC; All-Star Break, 3 @ Guardians

2025 GAMES ATTENDED:

Erik - 7
Peter - 22

A's Officially Break Ground on Las Vegas Ballpark

(photo credit: The Nevada Independent)

The day I never thought would happen has happened.  After over two decades of in-fighting, failed proposals, multiple ownership groups, and burned bridges in not one but two Northern California cities, the Athletics finally broke ground on a new ballpark on the Las Vegas Strip this past week.  It is a beautifully designed armadillo-like structure by one of my favorite architects - Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), who incidentally also designed the failed Howard Terminal ballpark in Oakland that I personally thought was even cooler - and, barring any setbacks, is slated to be open for the 2028 season.  I've been saying since the A's started pursuing Vegas a few years ago that I won't believe this is actually happening until I see a shovel in the ground, and I witnessed with my own two eyes multiple gold-plated shovels in the ground during the ceremony.  I actually tuned into the live-stream just to make sure what I was seeing was real.  MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, Steve Hill of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Governor Joe Lombardo, Clark County Commissioner Jim Gibson, embattled owner John Fisher, and A's President Marc Badain were among the dignitaries who pretended to shovel dirt from the pristine photo-op diamond-shaped dirt pile inside an air-conditioned trailer on the construction site, as part of an event that was emceed by team broadcaster and former Athletic player Dallas Braden.  

The groundbreaking event was pretty generic and scripted and typical of this type of ceremony, which was a little surprising given how Las Vegas operates, but the symbolism of this particular groundbreaking held a little bit more weight then many of its kind.  This was not a team simply building a new stadium just because they felt like they needed a new one like the Braves and Rangers in recent years, and this was not a team like the Twins or Brewers that broke ground on a park under threat of move or sale if it were not built.  Rather, this was a team that was actively homeless, playing in years of untenable situations in a stadium that was borderline unsafe, and in fear of being taken over by MLB and ceasing to exist entirely.  I don't want to say the Athletics "deserve" this ballpark, because the owner is a sleazebag billionaire who deserted Oakland for a few extra bucks, but I'm happy for the players, the organization, and that the city of Las Vegas is getting such a cool new attraction.  As much as I wished the team could have worked something out in Oakland, I'm at least happy that this saga finally seems to be heading towards the light at the end of the tunnel.  

I do still have my doubts.  Fisher has not shown credible evidence of where all of his private financing is coming from, other than banks verifying that yes he can afford it.  Tariffs, inflation, supply chain issues, the general state of the economy, and the impending expiration of the collective bargaining agreement all cast doubt on whether or not this project will finish on time.  And even if it does finish on time, will Fisher inevitably beg for more money like the Rays owner did to cover added costs?  Usually when these new stadiums get started, it kind of goes on autopilot and Erik and I start planning our trip there, but it's far from a certainty with this franchise.  It's more certain than it has been in 20 years, but all I can confidently say is that the stadium is being built, and professional baseball will be played in Las Vegas by somebody at some point.  I sincerely hope all of the groundwork being done in the Las Vegas community by the A's is a legitimate show of good faith, and not the rug being pulled over another city's eyes.  I'm super excited to see what a ball trip to Las Vegas will look like for Erik and I in our mid-40s, much more excited than whatever the hell is going on in Tampa Bay right now.

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 6/30/25:

Brewers 47-37, -2.0; 3 @ Mets, 3 @ Marlins, 3 v. Dodgers, 3 v. Nationals

Twins 40-44, -12.5; 3 @ Marlins, 3 v. Rays, 3 v. Cubs, 3 v. Pirates
Athletics 34-52, -17.0; 3 @ Rays, 3 v. Giants, 3 v. Braves, 3 v. Blue Jays

2025 GAMES ATTENDED:

Erik - 7
Peter - 17

Tour Molly 2025: Newman Outdoor Field

All photos of Fargo, Moorhead, and Newman Outdoor Field available on Flickr.

The 2025 installment of Tour Molly took us to the 4th different state of our travels in 5 years: North Dakota.  In doing so, we logged Molly's 23rd ballpark visited and the 35th state I've seen a ballgame in.  More specifically, we were in Fargo, and it was about a 2 1/2 hour drive northwest from Cold Spring.  It's a very odd feeling driving that direction on I-94, almost like you're driving off the face of the earth into the great unknown.  Maybe it's because it's the furthest west I've ever driven on this particular interstate, or maybe it's because the Great Plains is so vast and desolate, or both.  But even a state that has fewer people than Milwaukee County has breweries, and we started our weekend at one of North Dakota's best - Drekker Brewing Company.  The brewery has become so big and popular that they opened an adjacent food & entertainment wonderland called "Brewhalla" a couple years ago, and that's where I took Molly for lunch.  This eclectic venue has a food hall, bar serving of course Drekker beer, and a market on the first floor; seating, pinball, some event spaces, and another bar on the 2nd floor; and a hotel on the 3rd and 4th floors, with a dramatic atrium piercing the industrial building all the way down from the roof to create a rectangular donut-shaped building.  This was probably my favorite non-baseball place we went the entire weekend and we spent a good hour exploring here.  Molly got to try pinball for the first time, and I got to pick up some beer to bring home, so it was a win-win.  I feel like every state and major city has that one brewery where your loved ones make you bring beer home if you're visiting out of town, and Drekker is definitely that place in Fargo, as evidenced by the haul my sister-in-law requested.  After Brewhalla, Molly burned off some energy at the local trampoline park and in the hotel pool before we ended the day at Space Aliens for dinner, which is a small chain restaurant featuring a retro space theme, arcade, and for some reason barbecue.  Molly and I have now been to 2 of its 3 locations, so we have no choice but to go to Bismarck on a future daddy-daughter trip to complete the tour.

Just as my trips with Erik have slowly become formulaic over time, so too have my trips with Molly.  There are a few tried-and-true activities and must-do's on our trips, and we hit a couple of those on Friday in the brewery and the pool.  Another must is a hotel with continental breakfast.  I'm pretty sure our vacations could just consist of driving 3 minutes to the local Cold Spring hotel to swim and eat breakfast in bed all day, and that would more than satiate my daughter (not surprisingly at all, Erik has the same travel priorities as a 7-year old).  Molly was mesmerized by this pancake conveyor belt contraption at our hotel that looked like it was from the 1950s and they were clearly cobbling together with eBay parts.  Those pancakes and a good morning swim would be the foundation of an extremely busy day we had planned before the 6pm ballgame.  We hit the West Acres Mall, Red River Zoo, Swing Barrel Brewing in Moorhead, and the Fargo Air Museum all in the span of about 6 hours.  Molly was visibly tired by midday, but she was a trooper and we had a blast at every stop, with the exception of the Air Museum which was kind of a dud.  To anybody considering a trip to Fargo, unless you were in the military or are an aviation buff, don't waste the money.  We were having so much fun that I totally forgot about the Roger Maris Museum in town, but I wouldn't have changed a thing that we did.  It was nice to have a bunch of activities that didn't take more than an hour and were able to hold a child's attention.  The zoo in particular was great because it was so small with so many winding paths that it really kept Molly engaged and not complaining about walking like kids that age usually do.  

Our last stop before the ballgame was purposely the Air Museum because it was just down the street from the ballpark, and by the time we got there around 4:45, there were already lines around the block for people trying to snag one of the giveaway jerseys to the first 1,000 fans.  I've never been one to refuse anything "free," but by the looks of the lines I was more concerned about just getting a ticket than the jersey.  We paid $3 to park across the street from the right field gate and hustled all the way to the main entrance to thankfully snag two GA seats for $11 apiece.  I then made poor Molly walk all the way back to the much shorter right field line, but she kept herself occupied with her newly acquired binoculars from the zoo.  We did end up getting the giveaway jerseys, and Molly donned her men's XL just long enough for a funny picture before shedding it.  The kids area was conveniently right inside the RF gate, and doubly convenient right next to the visiting bullpen, so we killed time here for a bit before grabbing some food and settling into the bleachers.

Newman Outdoor Field has hosted the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks of the independent American Association for their entire 30-year existence, and also hosts the North Dakota State Bison D-1 ball team.  The exterior of this stadium shares a look that several other minor/indy parks of this era seem to share as well (Joliet, Schaumburg, Durham, and Akron to name a few), in that it has a massive front entrance with a grand stair to ascend to the main level.  The imposing masonry walls and entrance are definitely what stick out about this park, and is a style for this size of ballpark that you don't often see anymore in newer parks.  The late '90s/early '00s were all about the retro craze with elegant brick and stone work, designed to look timeless before a game was even played there, whereas two-deck parks today tend to be much more open and inward focused.  Fargo's generation of ballpark - neither old nor new - should age pretty well, and it was a treat to be at a place that had an appealing and memorable exterior.  I think the fact that this park also serves NDSU and is literally on their campus also helps explain and justify the aesthetic choice.  The brick and stone colors seem to match nearby buildings, as collegiate architecture often does, and the grand sets of stairs scream old campus building.  The brick archways that were meant to look like infilled windows were a very nice touch and helped ground the tall walls and give them some human scale. I also loved the fountains and mature trees surrounding the building that really softened the hard edges.  What I didn't like about the exterior design was more from a practicality side, in that you have to walk up the stairs to buy a ticket, and then descend to wait in line, then re-ascend the stairs to gain entry.  Seems like they could have a ticket window at ground level to help alleviate that awkward issue and still allow you to have your grand entry stair.  The gate we entered in right field was at grade, and the stairs were on the inside, so that was kind of a cool way to enter the stadium.  It creates kind of a build-up to the panorama of the field once you get to the top - Beloit is a recent example that comes to mind that utilizes this technique.  Once you're on concourse level, it's not unlike any other modern concourse with an open view to the field.  It was a bit cramped, but that could have just been from the near sellout.  This park does not have outfield access, which was not uncommon for parks this old at this level, but is always a big letdown.  My favorite part of the interior was the press/club level, done in a simple metal panel.  Nothing fancy about this material - you might even say it's cheap - but when contrasted with the massive masonry exterior, I liked how it softened the view inside.  Doing the inside in brick as well would have been way too intimidating and unnecessary.  Our seats were in a lone section of GA bleachers in right field, but otherwise your run-of-the-mill 20 rows of seats from roughly dugout to dugout.  The football Fargodome and a practice facility can be seen beyond the outfield wall, which is packed to the gills with advertising as it should be.  What Newman Outdoor Field lacks in originality on the inside, it more than makes up for on the outside, and the two aspects work well in concert together, especially when coupled with the on-campus site.  Overall this was a very pleasant stadium, and one of the better ones in the AA.  I've now been to 9 of the 12 parks in this league and have my sights set on a trip to Winnipeg sometime in the next few years.

Molly got her second wind after scarfing down a bag of cotton candy and getting her picture taken with Hawkeye, but the energy was short-lived, and we only made it through 6 innings.  Fargo-Moorhead was winning 3-2 when we left, and the box score tells me that they held on for a 5-2 victory.  The visiting DockHounds started off with a bang by the first two batters parking the first two pitches of the game beyond the left field wall for no-doubt homers.  Kolby Kiser would settle down and those would be the only runs he allowed the rest of the way, and he actually earned the win.  Dillon Thomas and Alex Olund homered for the home team over the very short fences down the lines.  No names jumped out at me on either team as an "oh yeah I remember him, he's still playing ball?"  Although the starting pitcher for Lake Country is named Brett Conine, and he's only a year older than Griffin Conine, so I wouldn't be surprised if he's part of the MLB Conine family.

I think you can guess the two things we did at the hotel before we left to head back home Sunday morning.  It was another phenomenal trip, and I'm so glad that Molly is still as excited as I am to go on these adventures with me, and that she even indulges me with a little baseball.  Sioux Falls has still been my favorite city we've visited so far, but we always have a blast no matter where we are.  I'm already scouring the schedules to see what the next town ball game is we can go to together, and I'm already looking forward to Tour Molly 2026.

park rankings and statistics:

aesthetics - 8
views from park - 5 (Fargodome)
view to field - 8
surrounding area - 5 (NDSU)
food variety - 4
nachos - 7 (bonus points for nacho helmet)
beer - 10 (they sell Drekker, Hamms, and 2/$6 Pabst Light...if that doesn't get you a 10 I don't know what does)
vendor price - 9 (don't see $3 dogs that much anymore)
ticket price - 9
atmosphere - 7
walk to park - 5 (pretty walk around the building)
parking price/proximity - 9 ($3 across the street, easy in/out)
concourses - 6 (a bit cramped, points deducted for no outfield access)
team shop - 7

kids area - 8 (bullpen adjacent...would be a 10 if there was a beer stand nearby)

best food - tacos
most unique stadium feature - main entry/exterior
best jumbotron feature - ads for Fargo Blues Festival

best between-inning feature - giant inflatable bowling

field dimensions - 318/408/314

starters - Brett Conine (LC) v. Kolby Kiser (FM)
opponent - Lake Country DockHounds
time of game - 2:22
attendance - 3875
score - 5-2 W

Brewers score that day - 8-5 L

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 6/16/25:

Brewers 39-34, -5.5; 3 @ Cubs, 3 @ Twins, 3 v. Pirates, 3 v. Rockies

Twins 36-35, -9.0; 3 @ Reds, 3 v. Brewers, 4 v. Mariners, 3 @ Tigers
Athletics 29-44, -13.0; 4 v. Astros, 3 v. Guardians, 3 @ Tigers, 3 @ Yankees

2025 GAMES ATTENDED:

Erik - 6
Peter - 15

Tour 2025: Oracle Park

All photos of San Francisco, Golden Gate Bridge, and Oracle Park available on Flickr.

The final stop of our trip was the day I was the most excited about - Oracle Park in San Francisco!  I was pumped for a few reasons: 1) we were getting out of the 90° heat, 2) this was my first time back to SF since the original Tour in 2007, 3) we had amazing seats in Levi's Landing, 4) we had an amazing hotel, and 5) it was an afternoon game, so we'd in theory have a free evening to explore, which we rarely do - more on that later.  We were on the road before 9am and it was about a 90 minute drive west through the Diablo Mountain Range.  These certainly were not tall mountains, but when juxtaposed with the flat valleys near sea level on either side, it was a stark contrast.  I'm no geologist, but I assume the mountains are part of what keep the valley hot and the Bay Area cool, because the temperature dropped about 15 degrees as we passed through them on I-580.  The drive through Oakland over the Bay Bridge was breathtaking, and it was hard to concentrate on the road as we descended into a foggy San Francisco.  We dropped off the car at our hotel in the SoMa (South of Market) neighborhood and it was about a 3/4 mile walk southeast to the ballpark.

It's hard to believe that Oracle Park is already celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.  It has this interesting duality to it where it still feels like a completely modern ballpark, but at the same time, it feels like it was meant for its site and has been there forever.  As a 42-year old, I barely even remember a time when the Giants played anywhere else.  It has a real sense of permanence and place to it and has a seamless fabric with the surrounding area.  There are many urban ballparks that are retro style just for their own sake, but the sense of scale and texture and rhythm of the masonry at Oracle Park ties into the street front very well.  We circumnavigated the stadium before gates opened and began our walk heading east from Willie Mays Plaza, and it almost felt like we were walking around Fenway Park or Wrigley Field, in the sense that this was truly a ballpark that was an integral part of a neighborhood, and not just randomly plopped somewhere downtown.  Part of Oracle Park's mystique and perfect fit with its site is of course derived from the fact that it is surrounded by water on two of its four sides.  This park is right up there with Pittsburgh and Seattle as one of the most beautiful sites in all of MLB.  McCovey Cove is on its southern border and empties into San Francisco Bay on its eastern edge.  Turning south from King Street onto 2nd street, we passed rows and rows of boat docks, a yacht club, and a seal statue commemorating the old San Francisco Seals baseball team.  Even on this side, which I would consider the "back" of the stadium if you can even call it that, there was the same attention to detail paid to security gates and loading docks as there was at every public facing façade.  Our walk continued west on a promenade running along the cove, and we then crossed over the Lefty O' Doul Bridge, which had a massive concrete counterweight hanging over the street and we had a fun time speculating how the hell this bridge actually worked.  The bridge takes you to the other side of the cove and features a statue bearing the cove's likeness, Willie McCovey.  This statue is within China Basin Park, which is a spunky little park that hosts gameday events, including a Pride Day celebration on this day.  We watched some performances for a little while before making our way back to the O'Doul Gate to get in as soon as gates opened at 11:05.

We barely got inside and my immediate thought was that I had no idea why I ever had this ballpark ranked so low.  I think I had this at 8 or 9 in my rankings prior to this visit, and I pushed it all the way up to #2 right behind PNC Park.  When Erik and I were last here 18 years ago, we were so focused and excited to watch Barry Bonds potentially break the homerun record that I don't think we allowed ourselves the time or attention to truly appreciate this park.  We also had upper deck seats back then, which offer a really nice view of the bay, but are nowhere near the experience as the main level is at this park.  The designers of this park could have just phoned it in and let the waterfront view do the talking, but all of the unique corners of this building and attention to detail really make it sing.  One of my favorite parts of the building was the concourses were designed to feel like a street.  The concession stands had a "storefront" look to them, the gritty concrete framework was accented with brick pillars, and I loved the touch of giving the concourses jogs and nooks to allow for places of aspect and refuge and to visually break up the long aisle, just like every great street does.  Every square inch of the concourse had purpose and really made it feel "lived in," just like the exterior does.  This park does an excellent job of feeling authentically retro yet not kitschy, and that is really, really hard to pull off.  

The outfield has an open-air concessions plaza with picnic tables that I definitely do not remember from last time (sort of like the area behind home plate at Warner Park) and this is where we ate our lunch for the day - decadent crab sandwiches.  They tasted almost like lobster rolls except with crab, on luxurious buttered toasted bread.  Left field has probably the most famous part of the park - the Coke bottle slide.  I was super bummed that the slide was only for kids 14 and under as I had been looking forward to going down it all week, but you know a ballpark is doing something right if even their kids area is cool.  One of the new areas of the park is a vegetable garden, which is down the stairs from the concessions plaza and directly inside the Marina Gate.  The stadium literally grows and uses this produce in some of their food, which could not be any more San Francisco.  This is also the area where the ballpark finally added bullpens (the park infamously forgot to include them in the original design) and there is a boardwalk-style arcade down here as well.  We ascended back up the stairs and ended our interior lap at Levi's Landing, which is where we had tickets and where I've always wanted to sit if I ever returned to Oracle Park.  It's literally only 3 rows of seats wedged between the tall right field wall and a 10' wide walkway, and then directly behind that walkway is McCovey Cove.  You feel right on top of the action here and I imagine it's what sitting on top of the Green Monster is like in Boston.  The only difference is, people park bombs on top of the Monster almost every game, but there have only been 106 balls ever hit beyond our section into the cove in the 25+ year history of this ballpark.  It almost felt like we were in a private club area sitting here surrounded by only a small handful of fans in our section, and we had a great time chatting with our neighbors during the game.  The couple sitting next to us stopped in SF on the way back home to Indiana from their Polynesian honeymoon just to log their 14th ballpark.  I didn't bother upstaging them by telling them we had already been to all 30, as they seemed too jet-lagged and madly in love to care.

Speaking of love, today's game was Pride Day at Oracle Park.  Almost every team has some sort of Pride Day, but it can sometimes feel like a contrived token gesture.  Going to Pride Day in San Francisco was a true celebration and held real significance, and it was very inspiring and emotional to be present for, particularly under our current administration that has made it an open mission to squash inclusivity of all kinds.  As a privileged, straight, upper-middle class white dude, it's easy to take for granted how cushy my life is, and I can't even imagine how marginalized people of the LGBTQIA+ community must feel these days, particularly outside of a welcoming place like San Fran.  I proudly clapped and cheered as an ally, I wore my giveaway Pride bucket hat in solidarity, I coughed up $40 for a souvenir sparkly margarita, and it was really fun to be in a progressive city again for a day.

On to the actual game, the Giants faced off against the Braves in this Saturday matinee.  The game ended with a walk-off, 2-out, 2-run homer in the 9th by Matt Chapman, and was an exhilarating way to end our final game of the trip.  The awesome pitching matchup of Bryce Elder and Logan Webb lived up to its billing, with the starters going 8 and 6 innings respectively with a combined 22 strikeouts.  As the Braves bullpen has been apt to do during their unexplainable freefall, they ruined a great pitching performance in less than an inning, as Pierce Johnson was the scapegoat in this game.  Former Brewers star Willy Adames started at shortstop for the Giants and went hitless out of the 6-hole, and still seems to be trying to hone his swing for this bigger ballpark as he's batting under .200 on the season.  Fan favorite Jung Hoo Lee was out of the starting lineup, but did strikeout in a pinch hit appearance.  Ronald Acuna Jr. continued his torrid start to the season for Atlanta since returning from injury by notching another hit and upping his average to .321 as of this game.  

It was yet another quick game at just a shade over 2 hours, and this afforded us what we hoped would be a long night on the town, but by the time we made the walk back to our hotel and checked in, we were dead tired.  We settled for a couple cocktails at our gorgeous rooftop bar at the Canopy Hilton, and enjoyed a rare sit-down dinner at a cute little dim sum restaurant a few blocks away.  Sunday morning was a familiar schedule of Erik waking up before dawn to catch an early flight while I slept in.  I was supposed to be on a 3:45pm flight home, but it got delayed so much that I was able to switch to an earlier flight.  I did still have enough time before heading to the airport to make one final tourist stop - the Golden Gate National Recreational Area.  This is part of the National Park system on the north side of the Golden Gate Bridge and offers miles of hiking trails with several distinct ecosystems, but what most people go here for is to get stunning views of the bridge from atop a hill, myself included.  I figured I may never be out this way again, so I needed to make time to drive over the bridge, and I'm really glad that I did.

Another year in the books, and another year feeling grateful that Erik and I still get to do this all these years later.  We are now middle-aged and can't (nor want to) party like we used to - and these last few trips have made that very apparent - but we still always enjoy our common denominators of travel, baseball, and friendship.  We've already got an idea in mind for next year, but until then, Tour Molly is just 3 short days away!

park rankings and statistics

(see original rankings from 8/7/07):

aesthetics - increases to 10
views from park - 10
view to field - 7
surrounding area - 7
food variety - increases to 7
nachos - 8
beer - decreases to 6
vendor price - decreases to 6
ticket price - 6
atmosphere - 10
walk to park - increases to 7
parking price/proximity - 1
concourses - increases to 9
team shop - 9

kids area - 10 (best in MLB - Coke bottle slide!)

best food - crab sandwich, and garlic fries are a staple
most unique stadium feature - Landing in RF/McCovey Cove
best jumbotron feature - Giants team song in 5th which I had never heard before

best between-inning feature - drag queens sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" for Pride Day

field dimensions - 339/391/309

starters - Bryce Elder (ATL) v. Logan Webb (SF)
opponent - Atlanta Braves
time of game - 2:05
attendance - 35162
score - 3-2 W

Brewers score that day - 4-3 W